


Can't Stand It

by SmittenForAKitten



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Best Friend Squad (She-Ra), F/F, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-15
Updated: 2020-06-15
Packaged: 2021-03-03 19:40:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,049
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24730942
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SmittenForAKitten/pseuds/SmittenForAKitten
Summary: Takes places after S5.\\\[  She loves and hates all these things about Adora and she just-- Ugh. She can’t stand it. How’d she fall in love with her again? ]\\\A fic where the Best Friend Squad has a sleepover and Catra gets lost in her thoughts more than once about how she cannot stand her girlfriend sometimes.
Relationships: Adora & Bow & Catra & Glimmer (She-Ra), Adora/Catra (She-Ra), Bow/Glimmer (She-Ra)
Kudos: 102





	Can't Stand It

It’s safe to say that Adora and Catra think the same thing about one other: That they both think that their partner is cute as can be. So damn cute that sometimes it’s unbearable. And it’s the little things that they do that make them love each other more and more each day. And each time they say ‘Hey, you’re cute’ there’s the response of ‘No, I’m not.’ and Adora’s little addition: ‘You’re cuter.’ And it’s Adora’s little addition that makes Catra’s heart skip a beat, even though being called cute is the one thing she hates the most. And yet, it’s somewhat alright to hear that word leave Adora’s lips. Whether it leaves her lips sounding softly like a whisper or it being yelled across the room. 

They grew up together in the Fright Zone, and because of this, Adora has every single cute thing Catra does in her mind. She has it all listed with memories of how she came about such cute things. For starters, Catra had come to the Fright Zone in a cardboard box, and for the longest time, Catra would enjoy being in or around cardboard boxes. Sometimes Adora would find her  _ sleeping  _ in or on top of said cardboard boxes and it was always the cutest sight to see. Although Catra grew out of that over the years, and took her place either on the bunk above Adora’s  _ or  _ she’d be curled up at the foot of Adora’s bed. (Which the latter is one Adora preferred, since she’s prone to nightmares, and having Catra be there when she awoke really helped her calm down.) 

Then there’s her yawns, sneezes, little purrs, the hisses-- all those little things that Adora has heard more times than she can  _ count _ . She still hears those noises to this day, and it makes her chest warm with joy to hear those sounds again after being away from Catra for so long. It even brings her more joy to know Catra purrs when she’s  _ happy _ , and as much as Adora knows, Catra only purrs when she’s around  _ her _ . Which is honestly a lovely thought, but also depressing at the same time. She wants Catra to be happy all the time, not just when they are together. But it’s something that can be worked on. 

God, and the way Catra sleeps. She curls up into a little ball with ears pressed against her head and tail wrapped around her body. Sometimes her tail will move just slightly and her light snores aren’t annoying at all! They sound so cute. Even though those in the Fright Zone would disagree and would sleep with ear plugs. _ “How can you deal with those snores, Adora?” _ she’d be asked, and Adora would always say:  _ “They aren’t that loud to me. Kind of comforting, really..” _

And then there’s Catra. There’s not very many things about Adora that're “cute” but it’s things she does - things that  _ only  _ Adora does that makes her a dork and precious and yeah, she supposes some things are  _ cute habits _ . And yet, Adora is still cute to her, but more beautiful and stunning more than anything. 

But cute things about Adora include: Her laugh. She  _ snorts  _ when she laughs. And sometimes Catra would laugh along with her just because her laughter sounds funny, but it also sounds cute at the same time. And her playful nature. In the Fright Zone, there was a lot of attention on her, but not  _ once  _ did Adora let that get to her head. She was still playful, and liked pulling pranks, and chasing Catra down the halls. Racing. Playful fighting. And seeing her smile and laugh right after playing around without getting caught by Shadow Weaver was.. Cute. Yeah. It was somehow cute to Catra. 

Catra also had noticed how much Adora changed since she left the Horde and joined the Rebellion instead. She couldn’t stand her back in the Fright Zone because she seemed perfect in every way there, but after Catra joined the Rebellion and was able to be by Adora’s side again? God. She couldn’t stand her. Her dumb, cute face that always had a smile, and the way she kept looking over at Catra to check if she was alright with everything. Just silently asking if she was okay. And honestly, it was kind of nice to know Adora cared so much. Even though Catra  _ told her  _ not to come back. But she’s glad she did. 

And now? Catra can’t help but stare at Adora as she converses with Arrow Boy and Sparkles. They are in Adora’s room - which is now shared by Catra since neither of them could sleep alone - and sitting on the floor with snacks and drinks having what was supposed to be a  _ sleepover _ but none of them could sleep and thus were talking a lot about things. Memories mostly. And Catra isn’t really listening in on the conversations. She’s just laying on the bed on her side, watching the three of them chatter away. She honestly just wants Adora to come to bed and have the two idiots leave but she’s trying  _ hard  _ to not be rude. Because after all, Arrow Boy and Sparkles are her friends too..  _ Not really unfortunately but she wouldn’t admit she’s glad to have them as friends. _

Right now, Adora’s hair is down, hanging over her shoulders, and Catra’s face feels warm as she sees the smile on Adora’s face and how she interacts with Arrow Boy and Sparkles. Her heart is thumping softly against her chest and a smile slowly makes way to Catra’s lips and she can’t suppress a sigh. She meant for it to be as quiet as possible, but unfortunately, it makes the conversation end between the trio on the floor and attention is on her. Well, shoot.

“What? What are you all staring at me for?”

“Oh, come on, Catra. We all heard that sigh,” Glimmer is the first to speak. “Are you bored? Maybe feeling left out? You  _ could  _ join us down here on the floor, you know.” 

“No thanks. The bed is comfortable.”

“But we have snacks down here!” Bow tries to reason with her, raising the little plate of snacks that he and Glimmer made before coming up to the room earlier. “We still have a lot left even though Adora keeps eating a lot of them.”

“Hey, they’re good, and better than the ration bars in the Fright Zone,” Adora lets out a huff. “God, I don’t even remember how they tasted. They were so bad..”

Catra loses interest in the conversation right away. The ration bars were  _ god awful _ . There were a couple ones that actually were  _ edible _ but the taste was awful. Catra used to share hers with Adora because she couldn’t stomach the whole thing, but Adora always kept them because she knew Catra got hungry during late hours into the evening when everyone was supposed to be  _ sleeping _ . Speaking of sleeping.. The four of them  _ really  _ should be doing that. Maybe Catra should join them on the floor. Maybe use Adora’s lap as a pillow instead of the  _ actual pillow  _ on the bed. Maybe then she’d get some attention. A little bit of petting, scratching behind her ears--

“Catra?” Adora calls out to her and the cat girl instantly snaps out of her thoughts. “Are you even listening?”

“Hard _not_ to listen when you three are loud enough to wake up _the whole castle_.”

“Really? What was I saying then?”

“Something about the garbage ration bars. I don’t know.”

“Mm. Nope. Nice try,” Adora actually started the conversation with that, but what she  _ really  _ was talking about was how people have tried to sneak actual food in but none actually succeeded. “As punishment, you’re joining us on the floor.”

“Huh? Since when was there a punishment involved if I got the wrong answer?” 

“Since  _ now _ . Come down here.”

Catra huffs. She didn’t agree to this, but whatever. At least she won’t get star eyes from Arrow Boy about how she joined them on her own free will. She starts by sitting up on the bed, standing, and then walks right over before sitting down right besides Adora. And  _ since  _ she was the one who asked her to join in the first place, Catra thinks her own punishment was in order. So she decides to use Adora’s lap as a pillow, laying up so when Adora looks down, their eyes would meet. And, well, since that was the plan, Adora most certainly did look down but voiced no complaints. This seemed all too normal to her, and she decided to bring her hand to Catra’s hair, petting her softly and scratching behind her ears.  _ Ah, yes. Just as she planned _ . 

“So,” Glimmer tries to strike up another conversation, pushing over the plate so it’s closer to Catra in case she decided to feast. “Tell us more about your times in the Fright Zone.”

“Not really much  _ to tell _ , really? I mean, Catra and I have known each other for a very long time,” Adora starts off by saying. “Still remember the day she came to the Horde. Feisty. Not wanting to deal with anyone. Then again she  _ did  _ come to us in a cardboard box.” 

..Oh hell no. She wasn’t going to tell stories from there. Catra can already feel her face burning.

“Wait. Wait wait wait. Don’t start from  _ there _ !”

“Why not?” Adora peers down at her, and seeing the red on her girlfriends cheeks, Adora has to suppress a smug grin. “It’s how you were accepted into the Horde. Just telling it how it is.”

“Because it’s--”

“Pitiful! Absolutely pitiful!” Bow completes the sentence, even though that’s  _ definitely  _ not the word Catra was going for. He’s actually tearing up. “They just left you? On the doorstep of the Fright Zone? Who does that!”

No. No no no. She is  _ not  _ having this conversation right now. She doesn’t know her real family - if she even  _ has one _ \- and she doesn’t even care at this point. The family she has now is-- well,  _ Adora _ . Adora’s her best friend  _ and  _ girlfriend, but they’ve been through so much and know so much about each other that they could be family? Maybe marry her to make things official? No. Wait.  _ No _ . Too soon to think about that. But god, imagining Adora with her hair down and a white dress - a nice,  _ long _ white dress would be very nice. 

“Catra, your face is awfully red,” Adora finally points out, that smug look appearing on her face that she tried so hard to suppress. “Are you blushing?”

“What?! N-no!! That’s ridiculous.”

“Aw, am I making you blush? The big, strong, feisty Catra  _ blush _ ?”

“No! It’s just cold in here, okay!” 

“I don’t think so,” Adora laughs. Catra’s just  _ too cute _ . “Pretty sure you’re blushing because of what we’re talking about.  _ And it’s just so cute _ .” 

“I. Am not. Cute.”

“You are.” 

“ _ You are _ .” Bow and Glimmer agree in unison and this just makes things  _ worse _ . 

And yet, Catra refuses to move from her spot, because Adora’s still scratching the back of her ear. Her body is definitely making it hard for her to be angry when a purr emits from her from the scratches, and it earns light laughter from Adora.

“I love you.” It’s said in a whisper, but it’s definitely loud enough for the other two to hear it. Catra can just feel their gaze; sparkly eyes and all as they wait for the response.

“..Love you, too, idiot.” Catra grumbles, averting her gaze, but she can feel Adora’s smile. 

“Now! Where were we?” Adora goes back to trying to converse with her two friends, all the whilst giving Catra attention and the affection she deserves. “Fright Zone stuff, right? Even though there’s not a lot to talk about?”

She hates it when Adora goes from one thing to the next. She hates it when Adora calls it cute and says ‘I love you’ in front of  _ everyone _ to get a reaction when Catra says it back. And yet, Catra also loves it all the same. She loves and hates all these things about Adora and she just-- Ugh.  _ She can’t stand it _ . How’d she fall in love with her again? 

**Author's Note:**

> I remember reading a post about Noelle's and Molly's livestream where Catra came to the Horde in a cardboard box. I figured it'd be nice to add it in here!


End file.
